In the handling of webs of material such as expanded plastic, paper and the like, for feeding to various machines that convert the webs into articles such as cups and containers, it is common to provide the web stock on rolls. When the web stock on one roll has been completely depleted, the web stock on the next roll must be provided to the production machine. Accordingly, it is common to manually or automatically splice the trailing end of the one roll from the web which is being fed to the leading end of the next roll from which the web is to be fed to the production machine.
Among the objectives of the present invention are to provide a web splicing apparatus which minimizes the time required for making the splice and which is simple and relatively inexpensive requiring minimum maintenance.
In accordance with the invention, the apparatus for splicing webs embodying the invention comprises means defining a splicing station across which a web from one roll is moved, a vertically movable brake movable downwardly for engaging the web to momentarily interrupt the web, a fixed knife blade associated with the splicing station beneath the web and a movable knife blade which is movable from a first position above the web to a second position below the web. A ram holds the taped end of a web from a second roll in position above the movable knife blade, and means operates the brake and the ram and moves the movable knife blade to sever the trailing end of the web from the first roll and tape the leading end of the second roll to the severed end of the first roll providing a butt splice. The movable knife blade is manually removable from below the spliced web, after being moved downwardly to splice the webs, and is inserted to a position above the second web for a subsequent splicing of the web from the second roll to another roll.